In an earlier post, we learned about the Imposter Syndrome; the discovery of the syndrome, the categories of the syndrome and the characteristics of each category. If you missed it, please click on the link below:
We know what the Imposter Syndrome is. We know how to identify it. Now we need to find out how to break free from it.
How to overcome the Imposter Syndrome.
As we have earlier established, there are 5 categories of the Imposter Syndrome:
We’ll start with overcoming the different categories of Imposter Syndrome and then move into general advice and tips that all the categories can utilize.
The Perfectionists:
You should begin to see mistakes as an important part of your success, taking them in stride and owning them. Stop using Perfectionism as an excuse to procrastinate; don’t wait for the perfect time. (Does that even exist?) Don’t wait until your work is perfect or until you get every single detail right before you DO. Get out of your own head and allow yourself to learn on the job.
The Superhumans:
Take the time out to care for yourself; don’t burn yourself out. Work is not all there is to life; remember that your ‘work life’ is just one aspect of your life and the other areas; mental, social, physical; need just as much care and attention. Also, please don’t tie your validation to your work/boss/office.
The Natural Geniuses:
Understand that learning is a fundamental part of life. You cannot know everything about everything, it is just not possible. It is absolutely okay if you don’t get it on your first try. Or second. Or third. It’s fine. Keep going until you get it. Never let the fear of starting over keep you from living. Don’t run from challenges and tasks you’re unfamiliar or uncomfortable with; instead, see them as an opportunity to learn something new; call it ‘character development’ if you will.
The Soloists:
Everybody needs help from somebody. Know this and know peace. You cannot do everything by yourself and, even if it were possible, you would burn yourself out. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness, contrary to what you believe; in fact, knowing when to ask for help has been recognized as a vital skill.
The Experts:
Just like the Natural Geniuses, it is important to understand that you cannot know everything. Skill gaps are normal. One way to remind yourself that you’re not as unlearned as you think is to focus on your strengths- talk about the things you know. Share your knowledge with an audience, could be 1, could be 10 or even 100. Give of yourself and you’ll see that you’re actually worth listening to.
You still don’t feel well-equipped to go into the world and crush the Imposter Syndrome? I have more to say!
Recognize your hard work and give yourself credit for it. If you’re the type of person that tends to overlook the amount of work you put into a task or journey, keep a journal where you can track your milestones, things you have done, feats you have accomplished that have made you feel proud of yourself. Write them down and look back on that journal whenever you hit your low point. Remind yourself that you are the same person who accomplished all of those; hype yourself up a little bit.
Lean on your friends. They’re a very necessary part of this life journey and you should understand that maximizing friendships is a real thing. Friends shouldn’t be limited to hanging out, seeing a movie, grabbing a drink, joking around… they should be so much more than that. On the days when it’s too hard to deal with the Imposter Syndrome by yourself, confide in your friends. Let them know how you feel, chances are they know exactly how to help you see yourself beyond what you think. Help you understand just how worthy and deserving you are of the good things you get.
Set clear and realistic goals for yourself. Don’t try to achieve too much in a short amount of time. The world is here for you, it’s not going anywhere; pace yourself.
Be nice to yourself and take it easy on yourself. Don’t criticize your own self harshly. What did you ever do to you? Identify your weak spots and actively work to fix them, but never beat yourself up for not being who or where you’d like to be. If you’ll find kindness from 1 person, let it be from yourself.
Recognize your feelings as just feelings. While they are valid, they’re not necessarily your reality. That you feel stupid today does not mean you’re actually stupid. It’ll pass. Again, be kind to yourself. Use kind words on yourself.
I hope that this post has done as much for someone out there as it has for me. The Imposter Syndrome is no stranger, even to the most gifted of us, but you shouldn’t let it steal your joy.
Don’t give in to the syndrome, it is not your reality. It is not who you are. You are not an imposter.
You deserve good things.
You deserve to be happy.
Be happy.
Love,
Naija Girl on a Budget 
👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽
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